Dubbed "New Orleans most wanted and dangerous criminal," Telly Hankton made headlines following a string of killings. Now, he's inspiring one artist in his quest to garner attention for issues affecting the Crescent City.

of new orleans', the police department, our most dangerous subjects." DUBBED NEW ORLEANS MOST WANTED.. MOST FEARSOME CRIMINAL -- TELLY HANKTON MADE HEADLINES.... AS THE KINGPIN BEHIND A STRING OF KILLINGS. NOW.. HE'S SERVING HARD TIME IN ANGOLA... BUT ONE MAN IS MAKING SURE HIS VIOLENT LEGACY ISN'T FORGOTTEN... AND THAT MAN... IS A COP. WDSU ANCHOR RANDI ROUSSEAU INTRODUCES US TO THE UNLIKELY ARTIST WHO CONJURED UP "THE GHOST OF TELLY HANKTON" -- AND WHO THAT PIECE "REALLY" HONORS. JUST BLOCKS FROM THE COURTHOUSE -- HANGS A MOSAIC -- DEPICTING ONE OF NEW ORLEANS MOST NOTORIOUS CRIMINALS... 14 THOUSAND -- 40 CALIBER SHELL CASINGS -- ARRANGED IN PERFECT SEQUENCE.... T THE FACE AND ESSENCE OF TELLY HANKTON -- A MAN DUBBED NEW ORLEANS MOST DANGEROUS CRIMINAL -- SPENDING LIFE BEHIND BARS FOR MURDER. "To use that medium and capture someone's likeness and personality blows my mind... And it's probably one of the biggest talking pieces that we have in the gallery along with the ceiling." "THE GHOST OF TELLY HANKTON" IS PROMINENT INSIDE PAULINE PATTERSON'S BAR AND ART GALLERY - TREO. WHILE THIS PIECE -- DEPICTING A CRIMINAL MASTERMIND -- RECEIVES A LOT OF ATTENTION -- THE MASTER CRAFTSMAN BEHIND THIS PIECE OF ART -- ISN'T WHAT YOU'D EXPECT. "It's mimicking my job as a police officer. That specific piece, and I think that's why people like it." CHARLIE HOFFACKER IS A HOMICIDE DETECTIVE WITH THE NEW ORLEANS POLICE DEPARTMENT -- AND AN ARTIST. HE ADMITS -- HIS WORK REFLECTS HIS LIFE ON THE FORCE -- AND THE PEOPLE HE MEETS ON THE STREET -- BECOME A PART OF HIS PALLET. " I'll go work a case all day and deal with the family and it's easy for me to get lost in a canvas and think about that family." "To do that type of job. You'd think it be easy to lose it, but he hasn't lost it... He just... It grows with his art." HOFFACKER SAYS THIS MOSAIC "ISN'T" A TRIBUTE TO HANKTON -- BUT TO THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO HELPED SEAL HIS FATE -- WITH EACH CASING -- FIRED FROM THE WEAPON OF AN NOPD OFFICER. "His power on the street is gone, therefore on the streets he's a ghost." "There's little blank holes and that speaks to his empire. There are these holes on the streets now in his empire on the street in crime. There are blanks where he used to be and that's an opportunity for good things to happen." HOFFACKER'S ARTISTIC ENDEAVORS PROMPT CONVERSATION, AND EVEN STIR SOME CONTROVERSY ... BUT HE HOPES TO SPARK CHANGE WITH EACH BRUSH STROKE. RIGHT NOW, HE'S WORKING ON A SERIES INVOLVING THE CITY'S HOMELESS... BUYING THEIR SIGNS... AND PAINTING THEIR PORTRAITS... TO RAISE AWARENESS OF THE GROWING PROBLEM. "As hard as we have to be as policemen, we all care. We all care down beneath the surface. It's all there, otherwise we wouldn't be doing the job." IT'S AN ISSUE THAT HITS CLOSE TO HOME FOR HOFFACKER. WHEN HE FIRST BECAME AN OFFICER, HE MET A HOMELESS MAN WHO WAS HURTING... BUT WHO REFUSED HIS HELP. "The next morning, the first call I had was a 29u which is a dead person. I said, ok I'll go over there not even thinking about the intersection. I went there and sure enough that was the guy and I kind of carry that burden with me a little bit and think about what I could have done more." SO IN ADDITION TO WALKING THE BEAT IN NEW ORLEANS... "I still feel when I have a homicide victim, it's my responsibility to protect them, it's my responsibility to make justice happen for him or her." HOFFACKER HOPES TO INSPIRE -- USING HIS TALENTS TO GET PEOPLE THINKING ABOUT LOCAL ISSUES -- AND THE FUTURE OF THE CITY HE HAS SWORN TO PROTECT AND SERVE. ON YOUR SIDE I'M RANDI ROUSSEAU WDSU. There's a band of mostly light rain moving ENE across the area. Every